What's in a Name'
by bumblebee88888
Summary: I wrote this story because I wanted to explore what would happen when Albus Severus, having read a newspaper article about the people after whom he was named, becomes furious with Harry for not telling him about the Headmasters. Please R & R


'What's in a Name?'

"We have to do it soon, Ginny."  
"I know, but I think we should talk to Ron and Hermione about it first; I am sure their children are getting suspicious too."  
"Yeah I think you might be right, because Ron was saying the other day that Rose keeps asking him why people always stare at me; I don't think she believed Ron's exclamation that he is 'extremely famous'. And seeing as she _is_ Hermione's daughter, I would bet that she's been reading a lot to try and discover the truth about me."

"Well, if she does find out she's sure to tell her brother and eventually the news will get to our children-"

"They're going to be so mad if we aren't the ones who tell them about us."

"Well I think we should talk to Hermione and Ron tonight, just to see what they think; we really can't wait much longer; it's too risky; they'll find out and if they hear something false or misleading it's going to be very hard to convince them otherwise."

Harry and Ginny paused. They could hear footsteps above them; someone was coming down the stairs and into the kitchen, where they were talking quietly. Albus Potter opened the door holding a newspaper article in his hands, a look of terror on his face. Harry had seen this face before, normally one that showed itself whenever James would tease Albus about the 'horrors' at Hogwarts.

"What's James said now, Al?" Harry asked looking into his son's face.

Albus didn't reply.

"What's the matter, Sweetie?" Ginny questioned her son.

Still, Albus was silent. Harry and Ginny glanced at each other, confused.

"Come on, Al. Talk to us." Harry realised that his son's face was still in the same expression it was when he walked in. It became obvious that whatever was bothering Albus, it wasn't his brother.

"What have you got in your hand?" Harry asked; trying to make what he hoped would be an interesting conversation.

Albus slowly walked towards his parents, holding the article tight in his hands as if it were a float saving him from drowning. Harry noticed this and became eager to see what his son was hiding from him. Harry held out his hand, waiting to receive the article, but Albus didn't give it to him.

"You're being awfully silent, Albus. Aren't you feeling well?" Ginny asked looking concerned.

Albus shook his head.

"Well you better get an early night's sleep. Do you want a hot drink before you go to bed?" Albus shook his head again. But Harry wasn't going to dismiss the situation that easily; something else was bothering Al.

"What have you got in your hand, Albus?" He asked his son again. He was hoping his wife would help him press the matter with their youngest son, but Ginny had begun to make a hot drink for Albus and forgot about the article her son was mysteriously hiding.

Ginny had now taken Albus' hand and was leading him out of the kitchen and upstairs to his bedroom. Harry was about to ask her stop so that he could question his son further when suddenly Albus, pulled his hand out of his mother's grip and stormed back into the kitchen, his face no longer horrified, but upset as if he were about to cry. Harry stood up, ready to give him a comforting hug, but Albus pushed past Harry's arms and slammed the newspaper article on the kitchen table and ran after his mother, leaving Harry staring after his son, confused and worried. But after seeing the article that his son left for him, Harry's stomach sank. Glaring back at him was a large black and white moving picture of Albus Dumbledore with the heading 'Debate continues after twenty years: is Dumbledore dumb or delusional?' Harry gulped as he looked at the bottom right hand corner: 'article by Rita Skeeter'.

_Damn it. _Harry whispered to himself as he began to read.

_Albus Dumbledore was a man of many flaws. Twenty years since his death, few can forget how his most foolish mistake cost him his life. _

Harry's stomach sank still further.

_The Ministry of Magic and the staff at Hogwarts thought Dumbledore was naïve and 'too trusting' of his employee, Severus Snape, a known Death Eater (a supporter of Lord Voldemort) and a lover of the Dark Arts. Many thought that Dumbledore was delusional in thinking that a Death Eater could truly change sides and yet, Dumbledore insisted to all those who would listen that Snape was on the side of good. Of course, by letting Snape into Hogwarts and allowing him to become a member of the organisation once known as 'The Order of the Phoenix' founded by Dumbledore himself, many thought that one day Dumbledore would pay the heavy price for trusting a Death Eater._

_Dumbledore's death was a shock for many people. His funeral was held on the grounds of Hogwarts in front of the students of the school as well as many other witches and wizards who wanted to farewell the Headmaster. Though undoubtedly saddened by his death, many were thinking that the foolish old man probably had it coming._

Harry's heart was pounding; rage was licking at his insides.

_Immediately after his death, the media believed that Dumbledore was perhaps pushed off the tower by Harry Potter, the only person who was seen running from the murder scene, yelling and brandishing his wand as if eager to kill more innocent people. We now know that it was Dumbledore's foolish mistake that cost him his life: Snape had killed Dumbledore with the Avada Kedavra curse and Harry Potter was running from the scene in pursuit of his then Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher._

_So twenty years since, Dumbledore is remembered as the wizard who trusted a Death Eater and paid a heavy price. While many are left undecided, others are still debating the pressing question: Was Dumbledore, despite his many awards and achievements, a dumb man after all or was he simply delusional for believing a Death Eater could ever be 'good'? _

Harry's eyes were prickling with angry tears; he was sure that Rita Skeeter would have stopped writing for the Daily Prophet by now, but no, she's still destroying lives and memories.

Harry quickly wiped away his tears as Ginny re-entered the kitchen.

"Well, Albus has gone to sleep, he seemed awfully upset and-" Ginny paused as she looked at her husband's face.

"What's wrong, Harry?" He slid the article towards her. Ginny's eyes skimmed the article and she too looked worried and apprehensive when she finished.

"What are we going to do? I mean, of all the ways in which Albus could have find out about this, _why_ did it have to be Rita Skeeter?" Ginny exclaimed.

"I'm going to go and talk to him."

"Oh, but he's sleeping Harry, we shouldn't-"

"Do you really think he'll be asleep after this?"

"No, I suppose not."

Harry stood up from the table.

"Goodluck…" Ginny whispered. "If you need me, just call."

"Harry nodded, kissed his wife on her forehead and left the kitchen.

Harry climbed the stairs two at a time. He had no idea what he was going to say to Albus, but he knew he had to say something to repair the damage he and Rita had done. Since the day Albus was born, Harry had envisioned the moment when he would finally be able to tell Albus about Dumbledore and Snape and how much they meant to him and how amazing they were, both as wizards and people. He could visualize his son smile and be so excited that he was named after two of the greatest wizards ever to live. But that dream was slowly falling away as Harry knocked on his son's door, placed his hand on the door knob and turned it.

A small figure was lying, sprawled on the bed and although Albus was being very still, Harry knew his son was awake.

"Al?" Harry asked as he slowly walked towards his son's bed, the springs squeaking as he sat down.

"Are you awake, Al?" Harry asked quietly, placing his hand on his son's back.

Albus raised his arm and pushed Harry's away, "Get away from me," he mumbled.

Harry was taken aback. Although he knew what raising teenage children would be like, Albus was only twelve and just out of his first year at Hogwarts. Harry wasn't ready to be rejected by his child just yet.

"Albus, where did you get that article?" Harry asked.

Albus turned onto his back and stared at his father, his eyes were red.

"Hugo found it in one of the papers Uncle Ron was reading. Though he didn't know exactly who the article was about, he _did_ see your name. I guess he thought I might like it. I don't think he realised who the photo was of, but he tore it out anyway and sent it to me by owl thinking I would like to see my dad's name in the paper." Albus scowled, "he was wrong."

Harry could not believe the look his son was giving him; Albus' eyes were watery as they stared into Harry's, his lips were trembling with both rage and sadness. Harry wished he could look away; he hated it when his children were mad at him, especially Al.

_Can you blame him?_ Harry asked himself. _Your son thinks that you named him after a Death Eater and a delusional, old man._

"Please, Al," Harry pleaded, realizing that he couldn't have his youngest son think ill of neither him nor the two people after whom he was named, "will you allow me to explain this to you? Rita Skeeter is a terrible woman, she made Dumbledore and Snape sound much worse than they really were."  
"Did she lie?" Albus asked aggressively.

"Well… no- not really."

"Well, that doesn't change much does it, Dad?" Albus yelled.

"But you have to hear the other side of the story, Al! That's not all there was to it!"

"I don't have to hear anything! Had you decided earlier that you wanted to tell me about these two men then of course I would have listened, but you've hidden it from me, Dad! You've had your chance for the last twelve years and now you've blown it! There's so much that I don't know and you never once thought that I would like to hear it from _your_ mouth, rather than from a newspaper!"

"But we did, Al. When you walked into the kitchen tonight, your mother and I were discussing when we were going to tell you, your siblings and cousins about our past."

"Well, you're a bit late aren't you? It's _your_ fault that I know! You can only blame yourself!"

"Please, Al, just calm down for a second and listen to me. Albus and Severus were good people."

"Not according to the article they weren't. You named me after a murderer, Dad! What's so good about that?" Albus was staring at his father as if daring him to find one good thing about killing another human being.

"Please, Al, I know how this must appear, but I really think you would like to hear about the Albus and Severus that I knew."  
"I DON'T CARE! YOU'VE HAD YOUR CHANCE, DAD! LEAVE ME ALONE!" Albus leapt up off his bed and opened the door to show his father out. But Harry didn't move; he couldn't leave while his son was so mad at him.

"I'm not going." Harry said calmly.

Albus continued to stare into his eyes.

"I know how you are feeling, Al. I remember when I was about fifteen how Dumbledore told me things that I wished I knew ages ago. He wanted me to listen but I refused. I started destroying his office because I was mad at him for keeping secrets from me-"

"Well, shouldn't you have realised that I would feel angry, just like you did?"  
"Yes, but we wanted to wait for the right time," _just like Dumbledore did, _Harry finished off to himself.

"Well you're too late!"

"Please, Al. I want to make this right."  
"You've screwed it up, Dad! You can't change it!"

"I know I could make it better if you would just-"

"YOU NAMED ME AFTER A DEATH EATER-TURNED-MURDERER AND A DELUSIONAL, STUPID OLD MAN! YOU NAMED ME AFTER TERRIBLE PEOPLE! NO WONDER WHY THE SLYTHERINS IN MY YEAR WERE TEASING ME! I WAS SO CONFUSED; I THOUGHT I WAS NAMED AFTER GOOD, INTELLIGENT PEOPLE WHO MEANT SOMETHING TO YOU! WELL, IT WOULD HAVE BEEN NICE TO KNOW THAT I WAS WRONG ABOUT THIS LAST YEAR, SO I COULD HAVE TOLD THEM MY DAD WAS **DRUNK** THE NIGHT I WAS BORN AND NAMED ME AFTER THESE TWO MEN, ONE OF WHOM HE SAW DIE AT THE HAND OF THE OTHER, BOTH OF WHOM WERE DISGRACES TO THE WIZARDING WORLD BECAUSE THEN, INSTEAD OF STICKING UP FOR YOU, I WOULD HAVE BEEN ABLE TO SAY THAT I HAD A **STUPID FATHER**!" Albus was yelling so loudly that Ginny had to restrain their other son and daughter from entering the bedroom.

Albus ran towards his bed and collapsed on top of it, his head in his arms as he sobbed. Harry was frozen to the spot, leaning up against the door frame. His heart was pounding furiously inside his chest.

Harry slowly walked towards his son and resumed his position on the bed as he watched Albus' shoulders shake uncontrollably. Harry was expecting to be rejected again as he placed his hand on his son's back, but was surprised that Albus didn't seem to care or notice. Taking this to be a good sign, Harry leant towards his son's left ear and spoke to him in a quiet, shaking voice; Harry still had his son's yells ringing in his ears.

"I know you must think I am a terrible father, but I hope you'll listen to me while I tell you what I should have told you long ago." Albus continued to sob, but seemed to be restraining himself, as if he were making an effort to listen.

"I have met Rita Skeeter on two occasions: the first time she wrote an article about me she described me, at age fourteen, as unstable and delusional. She has written many articles throughout her life and all of them were exaggerated, designed to create havoc and cause conflict and mistrust among the Wizarding community. Rita makes people appear worse than they really are. Even before I began to read that article, having seen that Rita wrote it, I knew you would have the worst opinion of both Dumbledore and Snape." Harry paused. "And I have no idea how to mend the damage she has done… but I'm going to try." Albus' sobs were becoming quieter and Harry hoped that this was a sign that his son was not going to ignore him for much longer.

"I don't even know where to begin with Dumbledore, Albus. But I guess what you should know is that he was the Headmaster of Hogwarts when I arrived and whilst I was there, he saved my life on numerous occasions. Not only was he the wisest, most powerful wizard I ever knew, but he was my mentor and someone I truly respected. As you saw from the newspaper article, Dumbledore had a long silvery white hair and beard and though you couldn't tell from the photo, he had bright blue eyes. I remember whenever he used to look at me it felt like I was being x-rayed, as if he could read my thoughts."

"Could he?" Albus asked, his interest overpowering the anger he felt towards his father.

Harry laughed to himself and smiled at Albus. "Yes, he could. Have you ever heard of Legilimency?"

Albus shook his head.

"Well, Legilimency is a very precise and difficult skill which allows you to gain some form of access into another person's mind and 'see' their thoughts so to speak. Dumbledore was extremely efficient at this and though he rarely used Legilimency against me, he did use it to force others to divulge their memories and thoughts. It was impossible to lie in front of Dumbledore without being detected unless you were particularly accomplished at Occlumency."

"What's Occlumency?"

"Occlumency is sort of the opposite of Legilimency because an Occlumens is able to prevent people from using Legilimency against them."

"Did you know anyone who could do Occlumency, Dad?"

"Yes…" Harry paused. "I actually attempted to learn Occlumency in my fifth year at Hogwarts."

"Really? Why did you need to learn it?"  
"Um, because I needed to protect myself from Voldemort's intrusions; he was putting images into my mind and Dumbledore thought these images could be dangerous to me." Harry said hurriedly, hoping his son wouldn't attack him just yet about why he hadn't told him about the prophecy and his defeat of Voldemort.

"So did Dumbledore teach you Occlumency? Could he do it?"

"He could do Occlumency, but he didn't teach me."  
"Then… who did?"  
"Snape did."

"So- so he could do Occlumency too?"

"Yes, and he was very good at it. I also knew that Snape could do Legilimency, and although he wasn't nearly as good as Dumbledore, he could tell whenever I lied to him."

"What was it like? Being taught Occlumency by Snape? Was he nice to you?" Albus looked apprehensive.

"Um…" Harry wasn't quite sure how to tell his son the complicated relationship that he had with Severus. "Um, well I didn't want to be taught by Snape, because he wasn't a very nice person. He constantly embarrassed me in front of the class and deducted points from me for no reason. So when Dumbledore suggested I learn from him, I was extremely reluctant and a little afraid because I believed, like many others, that Snape was not someone I could trust."

"IF YOU HATED HIM SO MUCH, WHY DID YOU NAME ME AFTER HIM!?" Albus asked, furious.

"Albus, I did hate Snape, but I don't anymore."

"WHY? WHAT COULD HE HAVE POSSIBLY DONE TO MAKE YOU CHANGE YOUR MIND?"

"I'll tell you in a moment, please calm down, Al."

Albus crossed his arms and stared at his father. Harry took this to mean he could continue.

"Although I didn't trust Snape, I was told by everyone I knew that he was a superb Occlumens and that I should try, for my own good, to learn Occlumency. I tried to do it, Al, I really tried, but it was very difficult especially when the person attacking your mind was someone you strongly disliked. Anyway, I never got the gist of it, but it didn't matter because eventually the lessons stopped."  
"Why?" Albus demanded.

"I, um, well Snape- before he would do his lessons with me he would put specific memories into a pensieve, to store them safely incase I happened to use Legilimency against him. One time, we were interrupted in the middle of a lesson and Snape had to leave. I decided I would take a look at the memories he so badly wanted to hide from me."  
Albus looked shocked.

"I was just curious, but I admit now that I shouldn't have done it."  
"Did he catch you?"  
Harry nodded.

"So he refused to give you any more lessons?"  
Harry nodded again.

"What memory did you see?"

Harry looked for a long while at his son. Finally he said, "I have never told you this, but my mother, father and Snape were all in the same year at Hogwarts. The memory I saw was of Snape in his fifth year at school. He had just completed his Defence Against the Dark Arts OWL paper. My Dad and Sirius (my Godfather) weren't huge fans of Snape's and humiliated him in front of a crowd of people by hanging him upside down. My mother was there and she intervened, telling my father to leave Snape alone. But before Dad could let Snape down, Snape, in his anger and humiliation, made the mistake of calling my mother a 'Mudblood' and-"

"WHAT!?"

"You know what a Mudblood is?" Harry asked, slightly surprised.

"Yes! Someone in my year, Slytherin of course, was put on detention for calling someone a 'Mudblood'. It's another name for a Muggleborn, it sort of means they have 'dirty blood', right?"

Harry nodded. "Anyway, soon after this happened, the adult Snape caught me, pulled me out of the pensieve and he was so angry, he threw me against the wall and yelled at me to get out."

"So he was really angry?"  
"Absolutely livid and for good reason; I had no right to look at his memories."

"But why was he so angry? Why did he want to hide that memory from you?" Albus asked, a little uncertain if he wanted to hear the answer.

"At the time, I had no idea; I just assumed it was because he was being attacked by my dad. But it wasn't until my final year that I found out the real reason why he wanted to hide that memory from me."

"I don't understand-"

"In my final year, there was a huge battle at Hogwarts. Voldemort was there and everything was chaotic. The year before, Snape had murdered Dumbledore and was now officially a Death Eater in everybody's eyes, including my own. During that battle, Voldemort remained hidden away from the fray and called Snape to him. Though the reasons for it are too extensive to explain right now, I witnessed Voldemort order his pet snake, Nagini to attack Snape. After the attack, Voldemort left and I approached Snape, against my better judgment. I knew he was too weak to attack me, but I was still afraid of approaching the man who killed my mentor. Much to my surprise, Snape asked me to take the bluish-white memories that were seeping out of him. The sight was extremely disturbing. In fact, I was so disturbed by it that your Aunt Hermione had to help me bottle the memories into a flask, because I had frozen to the spot. But just before he died, he dragged me to the floor and asked me to look at him."

"Why did he want to look at you? He hated you didn't he?" Albus asked slightly confused.

"I was a little confused too, so I went to Dumbledore's pensieve, tipped Snape's memories in and went to see what Snape wanted to show me. It turned out that Snape was, as I told you last year on Platform 9 ¾, an extremely brave man. He was always on Dumbledore's side and had used his skills at Occlumency to lie to Voldemort (an accomplished Legilimens) and his fellow Death Eaters. Although Snape was a Death Eater, he swapped sides when my mother was murdered by Voldemort."

"Why did Voldemort kill Grandma?" Albus asked looking worried.

Harry took a deep breath, "when I was a baby, Dumbledore heard a prophecy about a baby boy who would have the power to defeat the Dark Lord, Voldemort in this case. This prophecy, of course, would have been very important for Voldemort to know and luckily for him, Snape was there to hear it."

"So, he told Voldemort?" Albus sounded disgusted.

"Yes, he did, as a loyal Death Eater, he told his master. But once he discovered that Voldemort thought the boy implied was me-"

"Was it you?" Albus' eyes were wide with curiosity and anticipation.

"Yes," Harry told his son.

"So, you- you killed Voldemort?"

"Yes, though it was his own fault that he died."

"So that is why everyone keeps staring at you? My friends always said that they thought you were really cool, but I just thought that was because you were an Auror. I had no idea they might have known about you as-" Albus stopped abruptly, comprehension dawning on his face. "Hang on- you're the person people refer to as 'Chosen One' aren't you?"

Harry nodded, feeling ashamed of himself.

"Why didn't you tell us?"

"Albus, the story is so extensive, it is just way too long to explain in one sitting. Your mother, Uncle Ron, Aunt Hermione and I intend to tell you and your cousins about our past very soon, but we are just waiting for the right time when we would have several hours to talk to you about it. Is it okay if we leave that story line for now? I promise that one day you will hear the full story."  
"Okay," Albus said somewhat reluctantly.

"Thanks, Al. Anyway," Harry continued. "I discovered that Snape was extremely brave because he risked his life-"

"But why did he swap sides?"  
"I saw in his memories that he was absolutely distraught after the death of my mother. He and she were good friends for a majority of their schooling and he felt extreme remorse for what he did."

Albus looked doubtful.

"How can you know that for sure? What if he didn't really care at all for what he did?"

"Severus loved my mother." Harry said gently to his son.  
"How can you be sure? The memories may have lied."

"Well, I am almost certain for many reasons. But the most convincing was that Snape's Patronus was a doe; he had the same Patronus as my mother."

"What's a Patronus, Dad?"  
Harry pulled out his wand, "Expecto Patronum!" The silver stag erupted from his wand and galloped around Albus' room.

"WOW!" Albus yelled as he watched the beautiful creature canter in circles.

"Patronuses are guardians, but they also take the form of an animal that symbolizes the individual. Mine is a stag because my father's animagus form was a stag; Dumbledore told me that even though my father was dead, he continued to live within me. So when I saw Snape's Patronus, I was shocked because it revealed the powerful, genuine love he felt for my mother. Seeing that Patronus and the way Snape acted towards it was enough proof for me."

Albus nodded in agreement.

"Snape changed sides and spent the rest of his life being loyal to Dumbledore and keeping me safe to honour my mother's sacrifice. And when Voldemort returned, he lied several times in order to protect myself, Dumbledore and the plans the 'Order of the Phoenix' were undertaking to defeat Voldemort once and for all. He was, in my eyes, immensely brave and since seeing the memories of Snape's past and everything he did for my mother, myself and Dumbledore, I couldn't help but respect him and value his courage and strength. So despite him killing Dumbledore and indirectly killing my parents, I couldn't help but realise that he was more than I ever thought he could be, which is why I named you after him."

Albus smiled, "so he wasn't that bad?"

"No, he wasn't."  
"But he murdered Dumbledore! Why did he do that for? You haven't told me." Albus asked as if there were a loop hole in Snape's redemption.

Harry frowned slightly. "At the beginning of my sixth year, Dumbledore's hand was black and dead-looking. He told me towards the end of the year that he foolishly wore a cursed ring and consequently, the deadly curse spread into his hand and throughout his body. Luckily for Dumbledore, Snape was able to come to his aide, and by using his advanced potion-making skills, managed to prevent the curse from spreading to the rest of his body. In the memories Snape left for me before he died, I heard Snape tell Dumbledore that the curse would eventually spread to the rest of his body within the year."  
"So are you saying that if Severus didn't kill Albus, he would have died anyway?"

"Yes," Harry was relieved that his son understood the situation so well.

"And no one knows that this was the case?" Albus started to sound angry.

"Well some people do, but many wouldn't care to hear it, they only think of Snape as a murderous Death Eater and Dumbledore, the fool who trusted him."  
"But that's not right!" Albus exclaimed indignantly. "That isn't fair!"  
"I know it isn't, Al, which is why I was so worried when I saw you had read that article, because Rita was someone who, even if she knew the truth, wouldn't care that she was lying because 'no one wants to hear about good people'."

"But that's mean! No wonder why the Slytherins in my year gave me a hard time; after all it is pretty silly that my dad would name his son after a Death Eater. But-" Albus looked slightly upset, "if they always read articles like that, they're never going to know who Albus and Severus really were, will they?" Al looked at his father eagerly.

"Probably not, Al. But the important thing is that you know the true qualities that Albus and Severus embodied; that you understand that they were great wizards and admirable people- you don't have to listen to what others say, because you know the truth and that's what matters."

Albus nodded sadly.

"And, even better, if someone questions your name, you won't have to say that I was stupid or drunk, because you could-"

"Dad?" Albus interrupted.

"Yeah, Al?"

"I'm sorry for saying that you were drunk and stupid. I just didn't understand and I was confused and upset that you hadn't confided in me. I thought you didn't care about me-" Albus looked down into his lap, ashamed.

"Al," Harry whispered as he moved closer to his youngest son. "Don't worry about it, I deserved what you said; I should have given you the courtesy you deserved and told you, before you went to Hogwarts, exactly who you were named after. It just-" Harry was trying to stop the prickling in his eyes. "It just, it's so hard to talk about them. I was so worried that you wouldn't understand how much they meant to me. The Wizarding World was a terrible place back then and recalling those times just remind me of the true terrors in this world. But now, I have you, James, Lily and your mother, and I couldn't be any happier. I guess I just didn't want you to feel the pain I did or learn about the terrible things that wizards can do to one another. I just wanted to protect you…"

Albus looked into his father's eyes. "I understand, Dad, but there's no reason why you need to keep it all to yourself. Albus Dumbledore and Severus Snape were good people and you knew that. You should talk about it; let all us kids know about these great people, but also tell us about the dangerous things that could happen so we can be prepared. Allow us be proud to have you as our father, tell us about you: the 'boy who lived', and the people that helped you succeed rather than hide it from us, like you are ashamed of what you did- of what they did. It's amazing that you saved the world from Voldemort, Dad!"

Harry smiled, "it wasn't as great as it sounds, Al."

"Well, no matter how great it was, you are the bravest man I will ever know and although some people may disagree, like this Rita woman, you still did it: you trusted Albus _and_ you forgave Severus and I am so proud to call you as my dad."

Harry approached his son, arms out stretched and hugged Albus tightly whilst whispering in his ear, "Thank you, Al". The young boy hugged his father back in response, as silent tears poured down his Harry's face.

"Hey, Dad?" Albus whispered into is father's shirt.

"Yeah?" Harry whispered back, trying to keep his sobbing under control.

"Was Severus in Slytherin?"

Harry tried to stop his tears from falling so that he could talk to his son.

"Yes, but like I have said, he was very brave; I reckon and Dumbledore reckoned that he could've or perhaps should've been in Gryffindor."

Albus pulled away from his father. "Dad," he mumbled. "What's in a name?"

Harry thought this was a very strange question. "Why, Al? What's wrong?"

Albus spoke to his feet. "I've wanted to tell you since my first day at Hogwarts, but I couldn't just write it in a letter and I didn't want to say it in front of James or Lily. So, I- I- I guess now would be a good time. You remember how you told me that the Sorting Hat wanted to put you in Slytherin?"  
Harry nodded; he knew where this was going.

"Well, do you know why it wanted to put you in Slytherin?"

Harry knelt in front of his son. "After hearing the prophecy, Voldemort came to my house to kill me. My parents wouldn't stand aside, so he murdered them and then tried to kill me. But it didn't work, the spell rebounded and hit Voldemort instead and I was left with this scar." Harry lifted up his fringe to show his son for what may have been the hundredth time since his children were born. Although the exact detail is much too complicated to explain now, let's just say that that night, Voldemort accidentally transferred some of himself into me. So, seeing as Voldemort was the Heir of Slytherin, the Sorting Hat felt I belonged there too, but I didn't want to be in Slytherin, so I was put into Gryffindor instead."

Albus' mouth was wide with shock. But he quickly closed it and tried to look away from his father. "Well, at least you had a good reason why the Sorting Hat wanted to put you in Slytherin… I didn't."

"What? Al, you never told me that!" Harry asked, shocked that his son had managed to keep something so significant a secret.

"Well, I was confused because both you and Mum were in Gryffindor. I didn't understand why I would be in Slytherin, but the Sorting Hat thought I would be suited to both Slytherin and Gryffindor, so it let me choose." Harry's mind was spinning.

"But- but Dad, do you think that maybe- I know it sounds stupid, but maybe my name, the Severus part, may have had something to do with it?"

"It could have, Albus, but it would be pretty amazing if that were the case."

"But- but I have always wondered who Albus and Severus were and even though you never told me as much, I always knew they were great people… weird, huh?" Albus answered quietly.

"Maybe it's not as weird as you think, Al. Albus Dumbledore was in Gryffindor and Severus Snape was in Slytherin, in a way it makes sense."  
Albus looked into his father's eyes, his excitement was unmistakeable.

"Well you better get into bed, it's getting late." Harry tucked his son into bed, kissed his forehead and walked towards the door. Harry switched off the light and whispered into the darkness, "I'm so proud of you, Albus Severus".

Slowly backing out of the room, Harry closed the door quietly behind him and wiped his eyes on the back of his hand. As Harry walked away from his son's bedroom he realised that Albus Dumbledore was right; he and perhaps Severus too, will only have truly left when no one remains loyal to them and somehow Harry knew that that day would never come.


End file.
